the death and sweet tangerines
by shrouded moon
Summary: Sometimes, stolen moments are enough. Law/Nami; collection of short stories.
1. love

**i.**

 **LOVE**

 **summary;** "Can we... talk?"  
 **disclaimer;** applied  
 **notes;** I am sorry.

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"Tora-o," his breathing halted when he heard her gentle voice right behind him, "can we... talk? I mean, in private. It won't take long."

Law turned to look at her, his eyes slightly widened. He had heard the gossip shared between both their crews, so he could guess what kind of _talk_ was to be expected, sooner or later. Either Nami or himself would eventually need to talk about _it_ , before it became even more complicated than it already was.

Didn't mean he was prepared for it, though.

Truth be told, _they_ had been spending most of their time together. At first, only innocent glances were spared, but too soon... before he knew it, he went further and further, craving for more and more. He became addicted to their intimate touches. It was only a matter of time for him to—he could feel his jaw tightening—to... _tell_ her about his feelings.

"Tora-o?" Nami asked again, her head tilted to the side.

Law nodded, trying to hide his anxiety. "Alright." He gestured with his chin to let her lead the way.

He followed Nami closely behind her, to a place he was very familiar with. He had been to that place more times than he could count. Every dawn, they woke up together, and that scent— _damn it_ —he loved that scent. It was addictive, it was like drugs that always left him wanting for more and he didn't mind it at all.

Then she stopped walking, and turned to him, her eyes downcast. "Tora-o, I'm sorry if I'm wrong, but..."

Law clenched his fists. He couldn't hold back, he wanted to _do it_ , oh so badly.

"You..."

"Nami-ya..."

"WILL YOU STOP STEALING MY TANGERINES!" She snapped at him, loudly, and she stomped over to where he stood with unfocused gaze, "at first I thought it was Luffy, or maybe someone else, and I can't believe it's _you!_ No wonder you keep disappearing every now and then and everyone always finds you somewhere near my tangerine grove! Even Chopper and the others noticed that you've been spending most of your time here! Why are you so weird!?"

He closed his eyes in shame.

...

 _But it's love at first sight._

"Law, NO—it isn't _love,_ you freak! I can't believe you got addicted to my tangerines!" Nami still hollered at him, she was practically burning. "And STOP THAT! Don't think I can't see you using your abilities to steal more of my tangerines!"

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	2. princess

**ii.**

 **PRINCESS**

 **summary;** "I'm late! I'm late!"  
 **disclaimer;** applied  
 **notes;** another crack because why not, so OOC alert... Maybe, probably. Also, thank you for reading and reviewing the first chapter!

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Law stared at the woman—or mermaid, _whatever_ —before him.

He hadn't the slightest idea, what was happening at the moment and what he had gotten himself into.

When he saw that orange-haired woman drowning, he immediately jumped into the sea without second thought, ignoring his servants trying to stop him. Of course he couldn't just stand there and watch as the woman got swallowed by the raging tides. His servants had warned him about Lorelei—a mythical creature meant to lure its prey with beautiful singing voice... except the woman wasn't singing at the time, so he could safely say that she wasn't one or she just wasn't planning to kill him, and he saw nothing wrong with saving the woman.

However, now that he had actually seen her body, he couldn't see anything that was _not_ wrong with the picture.

She was a young beautiful woman, with long fiery hair and fair, soft skin. Her body shape was almost perfect... _almost_ , except for that tail where her legs should have been, covered in scales.

Now she was looking at him with wide eyes, and she noticed where his eyes had stayed right away.

Then, a slap landed on his cheek.

He frowned and glared back at her, only to find her scowling at him, deeply. "What are you looking at, pervert!?"

"I just saved your life, and this is how you repay me?" Law glowered at the woman as he swiped back the wet hair covering his eyes, "besides, what the hell is wrong with you? What kind of mermaid is stupid enough to drown in its own habitat?"

She grumbled and quietly admired his features, no longer covered by his messy and wet dark hair, then realisation hit her. "Oh, crap! I'm late! I'm late!"

Law almost facepalmed. _First, the Little Mermaid, now Alice in Wonderland references? What's next, Lilo and Stitch?_ He mused with a loud sigh, pitying himself. "What now?"

"And it's your fault that I'm late!" The mermaid pointed at him, "you have to help me get there, _safely!_ "

"Why don't you just swim to wherever you need to be?" he suggested, in annoyance.

"Well, you just saw me drown! I can't swim with this!" The orange haired woman then turned to show him her back, and pointed to the zipper at the top of her tail, "oh, and it's fake, by the way."

He almost hit his head on the ground. _Can I be the one to drown instead?_

"Stop acting like it's the end of the world!" she protested, earning a tired groan from the man, "oh, hurry up, I need to be there, like right now!"

"How is this my fault? I literally saved your life," he could feel a vein popping on his forehead, "why would you wear that weird thing anyway?" He reached out to the zipper, trying to pull it down when she slapped his hand away.

"You pervert! There's _nothing_ under it! It would look fake if I wore anything!" The fake mermaid hollered at him, "and if they find out that I'm not a real one, I'll look suspicious and I won't be able to complete my mission!"

"Wait. What mission?" He gazed at her, raising a brow.

She huffed and looked away. "Not telling!"

"I won't help you if you don't tell me what it is."

"Fine," she said, "it has something to do with gold and money."

He stood up. _That's it, I'm leaving_.

She held onto his leg persistently, "where do you think you're going!?"

"Why should I help you? You're obviously a thief," he looked down at her, trying to release his leg from her hold.

"How did you kno—I mean, no! I'm not a thief! Honest!" Nami shook her head and pouted at him. "What an asshole, leaving a woman alone in a stranded island," she murmured. Apparently this caught his attention because he glared at her.

"I _saved_ you."

"That was then and this is now."

He rubbed his temple, it was no use arguing with her. Heck, the woman's as persistent as a rock. "What's your name?"

"Nami," she told him, her brows raising.

"Right, Nami-ya. Where is it you need to be?"

"You're going to help, then?" Nami beamed at him. "School of fish!"

"School of fish? Like, a group...?" he cocked a brow, confused.

"No, school of fish, as in... _school_."

Now, he couldn't help but facepalm. _Did she just..._? "I'll _try_ to get you there, with my submarine... But first," he turned to squint at the ship approaching the island, and his crew cheering loud enough for him to hear. "Let's get you back to my place, and dress you up in something normal."

"I told you, I need to be in the school of fish in like right now!" Nami struggled as he tossed her over his shoulder and carried her like a caveman.

"And I told you, I don't help thieves—" A hard smack to his back cut him off, "hey, that hurts!"

"Let me go!"

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	3. tangerines

**iii.**

 **TANGERINES**

 **summary;** "I just want tangerines."  
 **disclaimer;** applied  
 **notes;** here's another Law x Tangerines. Please don't see this one as a sequel to the first chapter, it'll feel weird and so wrong.

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Law woke up with a startle, his palms sweaty and his breathing uneven. Realising he had just experienced another bad dream, he sighed audibly and straightened his back, not quite fond of the idea of falling back to sleep and continuing his nightmare. He raked his dark hair, his hand staying on his hair.

His legs were propped up comfortably on top of the desk, then he dropped them when he heard the door to his office opened slightly. "Bepo, what is it?"

The white bear gave an apologetic look, "I heard you sighing loudly, so I came to check on you, Captain. I'm sorry..." He watched his captain for a while, observing the uneasiness he was trying to hide from the navigator. "Are you alright, Captain?"

"Yeah," the captain answered, after a brief silence. He let his hand fall back to his side. "I'm alright."

Bepo nodded, although not quiet believing the obvious lie his captain told. "...I can make you tea, if you want."

"No, I'm good," Law replied with his eyes closed, the heel of his hand against his left eye. "Just get back to rest."

"Sorry... I will." The navigator started to leave, "tell me if you need anything."

Just before Bepo closed the door, he heard Law whispering one word, " _tangerines_." He stopped in his tracks and looked back at his captain. "I just want tangerines."

"...Aye, aye, captain."

As Bepo walked outside to bring his captain tangerines, his mind wandered to a certain woman from their ally crew—his captain's comfort.

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	4. enough

**iv.**

 **ENOUGH**

 **summary;** "...but his whole existence is made of tragedy."  
 **disclaimer;** applied  
 **notes;** double update because both this one and the one before are too short.

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.

.

.

Sometimes, when he embraces her, he wishes he were somebody else. He wishes he can give her something else, anything, but his whole existence is made of tragedy. Sometimes, he wishes he were another man, a better man, someone who will be able to give her happiness.

.

.

.

And when she looks at him, she smiles her gentle smile. As though she knows what he's thinking, she will say:

.

.

.

 _"I'm the Cat Thief. I'm not a good person, either."_

And she is right.

.

.

.

 _"I don't want a peaceful happy-ever-after."_

.

.

.

And his eyes will soften when she finally says:

"This is good enough."

.

.

.

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End file.
